Zelus longipes

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Zelus longipes
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Class: Insecta
Order: Hemiptera
Family: Reduviidae
Subfamily: Harpactorinae
Tribe: Harpactorini
Genus: Zelus
Species: Z. longipes
Binomial name
Zelus longipes
L.

Zelus longipes is an assassin bug that is a member of the (harpactorinae) subfamily. It occurs from the United States south to Central Argentina,[1] especially in agroecosystems in Brazil.

Z. longipes has been considered as a potential biocontrol agent, as it prefers caterpillars of Spodoptera frugiperda, which is a moth that is a pest in cornfields.[2] Z. longipes prefers smaller caterpillars, probably because there is less risk of injury while subduing smaller prey.[3]

References

  1. Hart, E. R., 1986: Genus Zelus Fabricius in the United States, Canada, and Northern Mexico (Hemiptera: Reduviidae). Ann. Entomol. Soc. Am. 79, 535–548
  2. Sparks, A. N., 1979: A review of the biology of the fall armyworm. Fla. Entomol. 62, 82–87
  3. R. Cogni, A. V. L. Freitas and B. F. Amaral Filho. "Influence of prey size on predation success by Zelus longipes L. (Het., Reduviidae)". J. Appl. Ent. 126, 74–78 (2002). 

External links

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